Chimera
In Greek Mythology, the Chimera is a monstrous creature made of the parts of multiple animals. See Chimera (creature).
The term "chimera" or "chimeric" is often used metaphorically to describe things that have combined attributes from different sources. In genetics, for example, an organism or tissue created from two or more different genetic sources is called chimeric, as in transplant patients with organs from other donors. Most other usages are related to this metaphor.
The word chimera is also generally accepted to mean an unreal ambition, a fanciful scheme, or even a castle in the air. This is in clear contrast with its old meaning of a bogey or an irrational fear. (Scource: The Superior Person's Book of Words, by Peter Bowler.)
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In music
- In heavy metal music, Chimaira is a heavy metal band from Cleveland, Ohio.
- In new age or electronica music, Chimera is an album by Delerium.
- In black metal music, Chimera is an album by Mayhem.
- In black metal music, Chimera is a band from the USA.
In science
- In biology, a chimera is a single animal organism with genetically distinct cells from two different zygotes.
- In botany, a chimera is a single plant organism with genetically distinct cells.
- In genetics, a chimera is a hybrid protein made by splicing two genes.
- In paleontology, a chimera is a fossil with elements from more than one creature, like the Ultrasauros and perhaps the Protoavis.
- In zoology, a chimaera is a group of cartilaginous fishes related to sharks.
- In Computational Fluid Dynamics, a Chimera grid method is a technique to use overlapping non-aligned grids to simplify grid generation.
In art and design
- In art and design, Chimera is a very pale purple or lavender color—a term mainly used when referring to painting. Chimera, known as a base color, is made up of a mixture of two or more colors. Another base color is Magnolia, which is also a common color used to paint the walls of houses, etc. when they are first built.
- As a noun, Chimera means a grotesque product of the imagination.
they are first built.
- Oil paintings of the cycle Chimaeras by Lena Hades
In business
- In the automobile industry, the Chimaera is a model of sports car made by TVR.
- On the internet, Chimera is the older name of a Mozilla-based web browser for Mac OS X. It is now called Camino.
- Chimera is a brand of lighting equipment used in photography and the film/video industry.
In fiction
- In literature, Chimera was a 1972 novel by John Barth.
- In the Star Wars universe, Chimaera was an Imperial Star Destroyer.
- In the anime Fullmetal Alchemist, a chimera is any creature that was created by fusing two different creatures together with alchemy.
- In the movie Mission: Impossible II, Chimera was the name of the virus on which the plot was based.
- In the video game Resident Evil, a chimera is a mutated creature with long arms and claws that hangs from ceilings.
- In Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next books, a Chimera is a genetically engineered creature with DNA from more than one species.